I’ve been reading a lot about Authentic Learning and how to adopt it in my classroom; it's an exciting idea although a little daunting.  There’s a lot of resources out there, but the majority of the change will be in the time and effort I put into aligning my current standards and curriculum to encompass the benefits of authentic learning.  The idea parallels facets of other theories like “communities of practice," and social cognition, and takes life experiences that can be accessed locally or using technology to form a concrete understanding for students. The method is focused on teaching students in a way that stimulates how studies have shown that they learn best, it results in a longer lasting knowledge as well as develops learning skills.  It seems obvious that this method would result in greater learning, but sometimes hurdles like aligning to state standards, testing, and access to amenities/funding become daunting.  What the theory explains is that teachers don’t have to recreate the wheel, it’s more about aligning their curriculum with other subjects/teachers and finding an applicable focus to unite the instruction into a cross-categorical project for the students.  Converging themed units can benefit students as there’s a higher potential for them to find success in a subject that they previously struggled in when it was paired with and “piggy-backed” on a subject that they had a better grip on.  On the other hand, students who may need more help in a number of subjects now have the opportunity to develop a greater understanding across multiple periods beyond the time allotted in their previous bell schedule. This aligns to what learning looks like for children and adults outside schools and it seems appropriate that schools begin to model it within the classroom. Here's a TEDtalk by Katie Martin that expands on this style of learning.